opinion
As a parent, long-time Meijer customer, and someone who strives to eat better due to weight management, chronic disease, and a history of cancer, I would like to see Meijer create healthy checkout aisles in their stores throughout Michigan (and across the other five states in which they operate).
If you haven’t heard of healthy checkout aisles, I’m sure you can at least imagine them. Instead of endless shelves of candy, soda and chips, picture an aisle brimming with fresh, ready-to-eat fruits and veggies, yogurt, hummus, ready-made salads and sandwiches, cheese sticks, applesauce, dried fruit and crackers. Imagine making the healthy choice an easy choice!
Why are healthy checkouts important? First, beyond the obvious benefit of providing customers with more choice, healthy checkouts would support the health of Meijer’s customers and communities.
According to The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America, all of the six states in which Meijer stores are located have adult obesity rates of 30 percent or higher — with Kentucky ranking seventh in the country, Michigan and Indiana at 10th at 32.5 percent (Michigan up from 13.2 percent in 1990), Illinois at 18th, Ohio at 19th, and Wisconsin at 23rd. Not to mention the obesity-related conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes that also rank high in these states.
When we consider the fact that the majority of our weekly calories come from the items purchased at the grocery store and that junk food, candy, chips, and soda are so heavily marketed throughout the store, especially at checkout and specifically to kids, it’s easy to see how more nutritious options at Meijer checkouts could play an important role in making it easier to eat healthfully.
Second, healthy checkouts would provide a more supportive and convenient family shopping experience. Yes, parents can and do say “no” to their kids when asked to buy junk food, often dozens of times in a single shopping trip. However, instead of having to navigate through 30 identical checkout aisles filled with junk food, candy, soda, tabloids, etc., I’m asking Meijer to create healthy checkouts that provide all customers (parents and kids included) with more nutritious options — thereby giving us the opportunity to, every once in a while, say “yes” to snacks we can feel good about and presenting us with “teachable moments” that are focused on good nutrition.
Third, healthy checkout aisles could support local businesses if stores replaced junk food with locally-grown produce. That might require changes to slotting and placement fees which food and beverage companies pay to display their products at checkout. When the only companies represented at checkout sell nothing but junk food and sugary beverages, perhaps the slotting fee system is doing more harm to our communities than good.
Why Meijer? Meijer has long been a staple of Michigan communities. It’s the seventh largest food retailer in the country with more than 240 stores in six states. As a privately-held company, Meijer has flexibility to adopt changes that are in the best interest of its customers. Furthermore, on its website, Meijer lists among its core values “Create[ing] a safe shopping experience for our customers and offer products and services to help our customers lead healthier lives.” These values align so perfectly with healthy checkouts and should be reflected in Meijer’s checkout aisle!
I believe creating healthy checkout aisles would give Meijer a competitive edge with families and health-conscious consumers, distinguish it as a responsible retailer, improve customers’ loyalty to the company, and above all, support the health of our communities!
Jane Kramer lives in Bath Township and is the coordinator for the Healthy Checkout Aisle Campaign.
https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/opinion/contributors/viewpoints/2018/07/26/viewpoint-checkout-aisles-should-promote-healthy-food-choices/825115002/Bagikan Berita Ini
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